


Life Ain't Always What You Think It Ought To Be.

by puerilebeauty5



Category: Winner (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Friends to Lovers, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-10
Updated: 2017-08-26
Packaged: 2018-07-22 16:16:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7445623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/puerilebeauty5/pseuds/puerilebeauty5
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jinwoo and Mino meet at a frat party in their first week of college and become friends. This is a tale of young love- happy times, challenges and all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 1

_**“I’ll shine down on my mother”** _

Jinwoo would always remember the day he got his acceptance letter. After getting waitlisted at his dream school in April, he had sent in numerous updates about his academic performance, extracurricular achievements and how much he really really wanted to attend the college to the admissions office. He had half joked about them sending him a cease and desist letter instead of a rejection letter after all the unnecessary updates. In response, his mother swore at him for inviting negative energy. Neither of them had expected him to get this far. Many of his childhood friends had joined the gangs in the neighborhood, selling drugs and terrorizing the other residents. Among the few kids who had completed high school, he was the only one fielding scholarship offers from several top universities. Those ones didn’t matter though. Jinwoo had his sights set on Albion University. They had flown him in for a campus visit in his junior year, and he had fallen in love immediately. The gothic buildings, the deeply academic environment, the professors who were actually interested in what he had to say- everything about that place was magical. He had been crushed but still slightly hopeful when he was waitlisted.  
On June 1st, Jinwoo sat in their small kitchen tapping his foot impatiently as he waited for the mailman. Like the overly traditional dumbass that he was, he had chosen to get his decision via paper mail instead of email. Other waitlisted candidates had gotten their decisions days ago, but here he was marinating in his anxiety. He heard the USPS van stop in front of their apartment building and raced outside to collect his mail. The grumpy postman shoved their mail at him without a word, but Jinwoo didn’t even notice because he was already sifting through the envelopes in his attempt to find the Albion letter. He quickly tore open the envelope, read the first line “Dear Jinwoo Kim, The office of admissions at Albion University is pleased to offer you a place in our class of 2012…” and jumped for joy. “Mum. Mum! I got in! I’m going to Albion University”. His mother rushed toward him with teary eyes and pulled him into a tight hug, “I knew you could do it. I’m so proud of you”. Jinwoo took a day off from his summer job and sat on his couch all day, clutching his acceptance letter with shaking hands and staring at it in disbelief. 

He had actually done it. It could only get better from here. The world was not ready for the tornado that was Kim Jinwoo.

  
*****  


Jinwoo managed to convince his mother to let him move into his new dorm alone. He did not want her to have to make the long drive back home alone, and they both knew he had enough experience to handle the move himself. If it also meant they could share their tearful goodbyes out of the view of complete strangers, all the better. And the goodbyes had been very tearful. His eyes had been red-rimmed for the entire day because of how hard he’d cried when he had to leave. Jinwoo had always been a mummy’s boy; He had never known his father. She had been his confidante since he was a child, and living so far away from her would be very difficult. He would just have to deal with his own issues when they arose from now onwards.

  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------  


__  
**“I’m as green as the ring on my little cold finger”**  


Jinwoo had an average orientation week experience. He had decorated his new room, introduced himself to numerous people whose names he didn’t even remember, made friends with a couple of freshmen on his floor and gotten his class schedule. One thing that Jinwoo had not done was attend a frat party. There had been one every night, but he didn’t think missing important orientation events because he was too hung-over was a good way to begin his college experience. 

It was finally Friday night, and Jinwoo didn’t have anything scheduled for the next day. He could go wild tonight. Not that he was particularly sure how to do that; between his two part-time jobs, classes and extracurricular activities, he hadn’t had enough free time to party when he was a high school student. This frat party would be a new experience for him. He looked at his reflection in the mirror noting the snug fit of his skinny jeans, the basic black t-shirt and his only accessory, a green ring on his pinky finger. This would have to do, he thought. He wasn’t exactly going there to hook up with anyone, so he didn’t have to dress to impress. 

Jinwoo joined the horde of freshmen heading towards frat row. Many of them were already intoxicated- they had probably pre-gamed the party. That was a thing people did in college as the clingy drunk guy, Seungri, whose room was two doors down from his kindly told him on the walk there. 

If Jinwoo thought that the thick haze of cigarette smoke and all the drunk people bumping into him on the way to the frat were bad, he was in no way prepared for the chaos that was his first frat party. The building was packed with people, and on his short trip into the next room to grab a drink, he had shared unnecessary skin contact with at least 15 different people. The room opposite him was the ‘club’ room. The dj was playing shitty edm, and people were dancing –grinding- all over the dance floor. Although he could see that most of the kids there were terrible dancers, he knew that he’d be too embarrassed to showcase his stiff dancing in front of all those strangers. Maybe later when he was drunker, he’d stop by that room again. He wandered downstairs into the basement of the frat house. It was significantly less crowded with about a dozen guys gathered around a pool table. Unfortunately, it also smelled terribly- a mixture of cigarette smoke, marijuana and cheap alcohol. Jinwoo decided that he’d rather deal with this than any of the other rooms, and dropped into one of the sofas in the corner of the room, tightly clutching his drink. As he sipped the nasty concoction of vodka and what must be engine oil, he surveyed the room. The people in the room seemed to know each other. Maybe they were upperclassmen? He zoomed in on the person who seemed to be the center of the conversation. He was tall and tan with a muscular frame and a smile that made Jinwoo swoon a little, or maybe that was the alcohol’s work. Either way, he was one of the most attractive people that Jinwoo had ever seen, and Jinwoo couldn’t stop himself from staring at him from across the room. Every little movement the man made was poetry. He kept talking and laughing, and Jinwoo stayed glued in his position on the couch, silently watching him and memorizing his features. By now, the vodka was hitting him, and he could feel himself getting tipsy and a little drowsy. He closed his eyes briefly to attain balance and drifted off into dreamland.

Jinwoo was awakened by a tap on his shoulder, and he opened his eyes to see the object of his attentions sitting beside him. “Having fun?” the strange man asked, a mischievous smirk spreading over his face. “What good is an O-week frat party if it can’t even keep the impressionable freshmen entertained?” Jinwoo blinked blankly in response and stared at him in silence for a good minute before he mumbled a reply “It’s fine. I’m just a little tired. I didn’t mean to fall asleep.” When the man directed another blinding smile his way, Jinwoo shrunk a little. He probably thought Jinwoo was an idiot. Who falls asleep at a frat party? “That’s cool. I’m not judging you. I just thought I should wake you up. Falling asleep in a building full of drunk undergraduates is probably not a good idea. What’s your name?”  
“Jinwoo. You?”  
“Minho, but my friends call me Huge Boy”  
Jinwoo’s eyebrows almost hit his hairline when he heard that line. “Um… I think I’ll just stick with Minho. Thanks.”  
He was startled by the sharp bark of laughter that escaped Mino. “I was just messing with you. No one actually calls me that. It’d be weird as fuck. Just call me Mino. You’re pretty funny, kid”  
“Oh. Okay. Are you a sophomore?”  
“Nah. I’m a freshman. I just know a couple of sophomore frat brothers from high school. You’re definitely a freshman. I can tell. You still have that innocent glow”  
Jinwoo narrowed his eyes in response. He couldn’t tell if Mino was making fun of him or not.  
“Do not”  
“Do too”  
“Do not”  
“Do too”  
‘How would you even know that? You’re a freshman too.”  
“Oh, but I’m not an impressionable freshman, young padawan. I’m old and hardened. I’ve seen things.”  
“How old are you?”  
“18. You?”  
“19. So you can’t call me young padawan anymore. It’s not my fault that I still have my youthful beauty and you don’t.”  
Mino stared at Jinwoo for a few seconds with an amused glint in his eyes. It made Jinwoo squirm in discomfort.  
“Deal. I just bummed a blunt off one of the frat bros. Want to go smoke outside?”  
All the lectures his mother had delivered about drugs fucking up his future and marijuana being a gateway drug flashed through Jinwoo’s mind. He hesitated then decided to go with a honest answer.  
“I’ve never done that before. I don’t know…”  
“Well, college is for new experiences. Let’s go learn a new lesson, young padawan”  
Before Jinwoo could voice his complaints about the new nickname, Mino had already pushed himself off the couch and begun walking towards the stairs without looking back. After Mino got to the pool table, Jinwoo made a decision. A cute boy was offering new experiences with no hidden strings. How could he say no to that? He got up and followed Mino outside the building.

It had gotten a little chilly outside in the short time that Jinwoo had been in the frat house. The cool breeze gave him goosebumps, and he surreptitiously rubbed his arms against his arms to warm them up as he followed Mino to a secluded corner behind the building. If he had been completely sober, he would probably have thought he was being lax with his safety, but his inhibitions were down and all he could think about was huddling close to Mino, the adventurous boy with a smile that lit up the world. 

They stopped beside the outhouse, and Mino climbed onto the balcony, reaching out to pull Jinwoo up with him. As Jinwoo struggle to get comfortable on the cold concrete floor, he watched Mino pull a blunt out of his pocket, light it up and inhale deeply. When Mino passed him the blunt, he took it. He had watched numerous people smoke, but he’d never done it himself, and he wasn’t sure what the usual technique was. Mino already thought he was naïve, so he decided to just wing it instead of asking. Jinwoo tried to inhale the smoke, and immediately started choking and coughing as it went into his trachea. He was coughing so hard that he barely noticed the hand on his back. “Are you okay, Jinwoo?” Through eyes blurry with tears, he saw Mino’s concerned face and tried to nod convincingly before he was overtaken by another coughing fit. Mino continued rubbing his back soothingly until it passed. “I thought you were kidding about the not knowing how to smoke thing. Come on, I’ll show you”.

Mino’s smoking tutorial involved everything from showing him how to roll a blunt to actual smoking. Mino’s fingers unnecessarily brushing Jinwoo’s lips several times was just an added bonus to the lessons learned. They quietly smoked together after that. Jinwoo had started worrying about whether he should be trying to make conversation when Mino broke the silence.  
“So where are you from?”  
“Chicago. You?”  
“LA. It’s already too cold for me. I don’t even know why I decided it was a good idea to move to Boston for college.”  
“If you think this is cold, you should experience a good old Chicago winter. We had a -30 degree day last January, and I still had to go to school. It’s hell, I tell you.”  
“Noted. Is this your first choice college?”  
“Yep. I’ve wanted to go to college here since I visited in junior year. Luckily, I got off the waitlist so I didn’t have to go to school in sunny California”  
“Me too. Waitlisters unite. Must be fate that we met already. I always consoled myself by saying that the admissions office waitlisted me at first because they thought I was too cool to enroll here. I’m going to have to revise that excuse now”  
Jinwoo playfully punched him in the shoulder, and they shared a smile of solidarity.  
“What dorm were you assigned to? I’m in Bastion”  
“Me too. What floor are you on?”  
“Third, you?”  
“4th.”  
“Nice. Guess we’ll be seeing each other often then, young padawan.”  
“Stop calling me that. I’m older than you are. Yeah, I guess so. That reminds me. I need to get home soon. I have to be up before 11 tomorrow morning.”  
“I’ll walk with you. This party is pretty lame anyways.”

The boys both vacated their seats on the balcony, and dusted their clothes off. “You’re cold. Why didn’t you say anything, tough Chicago boy? I have two jackets on right now. Here you go”  
Mino shrugged off his jacket and handed it to Jinwoo, who put it on without a word. “C’mon. Let’s go” They made the long walk back to their dorm like two old friends, making inane conversation and laughing loudly together.

  
******  


Jinwoo didn’t see Mino for the rest of the weekend. His head had been so fuzzy from the blunt and the alcohol on Saturday that he had forgotten to get Mino’s number before heading to his room. He had managed to convince himself that he had lurked on the 3rd floor throughout Sunday because he was trying to make some new friend, not because he was hoping to bump into a certain intriguing resident of that floor.

He was currently headed to his first Honors Biology class on the other side of campus. Although Jinwoo still had no idea what he wanted to do with his life, he was considering a premed major. He liked helping people, and the job security was a definite plus. Jinwoo was so deeply immersed in his thoughts and worries about beginning his academic career that he didn’t hear someone shouting his name. Something solid and warm crashed into him from behind, making him jump in panic and fall to the floor. He looked up to see Mino staring down at him, a concerned look on his face as he leaned over to pick up Jinwoo’s backpack. “Are you okay? Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I just wanted to say hi.” Jinwoo stood up, his face flooded pink with embarrassment. “Don’t worry about it. It’s my fault. I’m already so used to this place that I haven’t been as vigilant as I usually am” He dusted the dirt off his trousers as he spoke, but when he looked up, Mino was looking at him like he actually understood. Doubtful since he was another rich partying kid from California. 

They began walking side by side. “Where are you headed”. Jinwoo turned his head to direct a quizzical look at Mino “To class… Like everyone else here. Are you by any chance going to the frat house on a Monday morning?” Mino turned bashful, which was startling because Jinwoo had not seen that side of him yesterday. The switch was fascinating. “Shut up. I’m going to class too. I just want to know your class schedule”. Jinwoo gave him a small smile “I have Honors Biology right now and Humanities 101 after that.” Mino flashed his usual wide smile at Jinwoo, and he felt himself go a little weak in the knees. “Honors bio? That’s awesome. I’m in that class too.” Jinwoo hoped his surprise he felt at that new information did not manifest in his facial expression. Honors biology here was hardcore, and only 10% of the students who took the qualifying exam got in. He had some trouble reconciling the easy going stoner from Friday night with someone who could display the amount of dedication, hardwork and intelligence necessary to get into the honors classes at one of the best universities in the world. Mino nudged him out of his thoughtful silence. “We’re a little late. I’m going to run ahead now. I’ll save you the seat next to mine.” Before Jinwoo could even reply, Mino had literally run across the quad and into the biology building. Mino was definitely an enigma that Jinwoo was invested in figuring out.


	2. 2.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jinwoo makes a new 'friend'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: This is my first sex scene ever. It might be a little awkward. I'll make up for it in the ones that follow.

  
**'I've never known the lovin' of a man'**

Over the next few weeks, Jinwoo spent more time with Mino than he had ever spent with anyone else. Well, everyone but his mum. They ate all their meals together, studied together and partied together. Jinwoo felt as though he was discovering new parts of Mino’s personality with every passing day. For example, he knew that Mino turned into a giant baby whenever he saw children because their program coordinator had brought his kid to their first meeting and Mino had ignored everyone else that night in order to play with the toddler. He also knew that when Mino got mad, it was best to leave him alone to work out his anger however he wanted to, even if it meant taking him to the emergency room at 3am on a Saturday morning because his dumbass thought it was a good idea to punch the wall. After the puppy petting event, he learned that Mino would ignore his allergies if it meant that he could be surrounded by cute golden retriever puppies for thirty minutes. He learned that Mino was possibly the most penny-pinching L.A rich kid in the universe. He would go to ridiculous lengths to save a dollar. Jinwoo never felt embarrassed about his low socioeconomic status when he was with Mino. If anything, that had made Jinwoo even more comfortable around the other boy. It scared Jinwoo how codependent they had gotten in just three months. He felt like he could tell Mino everything- well, almost everything. He had some secrets- particularly the regular dreams that involved Mino doing very non-platonic things to his body- that he wouldn’t reveal even under threat of dismemberment. Similarly, Mino kept some things from him. Every time he broached the topic of Mino’s family, especially his parents, Mino would find a way to distract him or change the topic. It wasn’t a big deal, but Jinwoo wondered what Mino was hiding.  


Mino also liked to drag Jinwoo to frat parties. After the first one, he had decided that they weren’t for him, but he couldn’t resist Mino’s puppy dog eyes. He went to the frat houses practically every weekend. Mino seemed to love them. He had talked to Jinwoo about pledging during their sophomore year, and every time they went there, the debonair, mischievous Mino that he met during O-week reappeared. Although Mino tried to ensure that Jinwoo was always entertained, which was a little difficult because all Jinwoo ever did was drink from his personal flask while seated on his favorite couch, he often disappeared for relatively long periods of time. Sometimes, it was because he had been distracted by his buddies. Other times, it was the girls. Jinwoo knew Mino hooked up with girls at the frat parties; he wasn’t stupid. They never talked about it, but when Mino came back downstairs with messy hair, smelling of perfume and sweat, Jinwoo knew. He’d be lying if he said he was not affected by the thought of the boy he wanted getting it on with some stranger while he was in the same building, but Mino was straight. He didn’t have a chance with him anyway. So, Jinwoo would try to drink his hurt away while making jokes with Mino and his friends. The next morning, he would wake up feeling terrible, both physically and emotionally. It was a torturous cycle. 

That week, Jinwoo and Mino went out to console themselves after the mess that was their Honors Biology midterm. Jinwoo had poured half a bottle of vodka into his flask when they were still in the dorm, and they had both pregamed the party in his room. He was well prepared to spend his night in a drunken haze on his frat couch, so he didn’t even complain when Mino left him to go to the ‘club’ room upstairs. Just as he opened his flask, he felt someone plop down beside him on the couch uninvited. He turned around to glare at the stranger, but he was surprised when the other boy just smiled in reply. He was cute- long and lean with catlike features and a ton of eyeliner. That wasn’t Jinwoo’s usual type, but he was instantly drawn in by the stranger’s piercing gaze. “Hey. I’m Seungyoon. What’s your name?” Jinwoo looked at him suspiciously. “Jinwoo”. “Hey Jinwoo. I’ve seen you drinking alone on this couch for three weeks in a row now. Would you like some company?” As he started to decline Seungyoon’s offer, he realized that he’d probably spend all his time alone until Mino was done with his hookup upstairs, so he really had nothing to lose by accepting. “Sure. Why not?” He took a swig of vodka and passed the flask to Seungyoon. “So you’ve been watching me, huh? Why?” “I can’t keep my eyes off ridiculously attractive boys. It’s my main weakness.” Jinwoo tried to stop himself from blushing, but he could feel the heat flood his face. “Oh”  
Seungyoon smiled at him warmly “No need to be shy about it. You’re very cute. I didn’t see you around last year. Are you a freshman?” “Yeah. And you’re a sophomore?” “Yeah. Listen, I’ll cut to the chase. I hate small talk and I can tell you don’t like it either. Do you want to hook-up? I have a room on the third floor that we could go to for some privacy.” Jinwoo was taken aback by the directness of the proposition. He had never hooked up with a complete stranger before, but then again, a complete (cute) stranger had never propositioned him before. He had been too hung up on Mino to have sex with anyone but his hand since he moved away from Chicago, and it was kind of pathetic to be mooning over someone who was probably fucking some girl’s brains out right above him. Jinwoo made a decision. “Are you clean?” “Yeah, I got tested last week, and I have protection.” “Cool. Let’s go”. The boys left their seats on the couch and headed towards the stairs. It was doubly awkward because Jinwoo knew they were going to have sex but he didn’t know enough about Seungyoon to make conversation on their way upstairs. Plus, he was tenting his pants because he couldn’t stop thinking about what they were going to do. 

When they finally got to Seungyoon’s room on the third floor, Jinwoo stood around awkwardly surveying the room. It was very simple, but aesthetic? There were posters of some artworks that Jinwoo vaguely recognized from his high school art history class on the walls and a cat tree by the window. A frat house seemed like a weird place to keep cats, but Jinwoo couldn’t see any cats in the room so he let it go. He watched Seungyoon lock the door, and within seconds, Seungyoon’s lips were on his. Seungyoon’s teeth nipped at his lower lip, drawing a gasp out of Jinwoo, then his tongue slid into Jinwoo’s mouth and the kiss turned filthy. They stumbled toward the bed, lips still locked as their tongues moved smoothly against each other. When the back of Jinwoo’s knees bumped into the bed frame, Seungyoon shoved him onto the bed and began tugging his clothes off. Jinwoo felt his already hard cock become more engorged as he watched the older boy strip. He was beautiful- lean and long with smooth, blemish-free skin that Jinwoo wanted to reach out and touch. Seungyoonpulled his pants off to reveal prominent hipbones and a very pretty penis. It was half hard, pink and long; Jinwoo licked his lips in anticipation, making Seungyoon groan in response. They continued kissing on the bed, as Jinwoo ran his hands over Seungyoon’s bare back, occasionally moving lower to grope his pert butt as they grinded together. Jinwoo was fully erect when Seungyoon pulled away to strip Jinwoo. “God, you’re so pretty. And your mouth. I’ve been staring at those lips for weeks, imagining them around me, sucking me into your warm mouth.” “Really?” Jinwoo replied, staring up at Seungyoon with heavy lidded eyes. “Then your imaginations are about to become reality” He leaned forward to press a kiss against Seungyoon’s lips, then moved down, kissing his nape, chest- pausing to suck on his nipples, belly and hipbones. He lingered in front of Seungyoon’s groin, teasing him by blowing warm air against his erect cock and watching it twitch in response. He smiled as he watched Seungyoon arch his back as he pushed his hips upwards trying to find Jinwoo’s mouth, his face full of pleading desperation. Jinwoo wrapped his palm around the base of Seungyoon’s dick, enjoying the warm, heavy thickness of it in his hand. Slowly, he began to stroke. Up, down, pause to look at Seungyoon’s face, and back to the beginning of the cycle. He wet his lips and leaned over to softly kiss the tip of Seungyoon’s dick, which drew a gasp out of the black haired man. He quickly opened his mouth and took the head in. The taste of precum filled his mouth and his cheeks hollowed out as he sucked deeply. Seungyoon let out a litany of curses, slowly grinding his hips upwards and feeding more of his hard phallus into Jinwoo’s eager mouth. When it was about two inches in, Jinwoo pushed Seungyoon’s hips back into the bed and moved his mouth to the base, licking the underside from the base to the tip before sucking the phallus back into his mouth again. Seungyoon’s moans went right to his groin, and he couldn’t stop himself from grinding against the bed, desperately seeking pleasure. He could feel Seungyoon’s hand rest on the back of his head as they gently guided him up and down. “I’m so ~ close~” Seungyoon whined. He held Jinwoo’s head in place as he began to thrust more deeply into Jinwoo’s mouth. Jinwoo gagged when it hit the back of his throat. Just as he began to pull off, he felt Seungyoon’s warm, stick release on his tongue. “Fuck, I’m sorry. I should have warned you. Do you want a towel?” Jinwoo signaled to him that he was fine, swallowed - while cringing at the bitter aftertaste- and gave Seungyoon’s cock one last gentle kiss before he lifted his head. 

“Give me a few minutes to recover.” Jinwoo nodded his reply, and pulled his pants off. His erect penis sprang out of his boxers, smacking his belly with a soft thwack. He was so hard; it was almost painful. It had been months since he’d hooked up with anyone. He slowly stroked himself while looking at Seungyoon. Even as he lay in bed trying to recover from his orgasm, the other boy was a vision of debauchery. His eyes were unfocused and his neck was covered in hickeys. Jinwoo’s hickeys. “Where’s the lube?” “Desk drawer” Too aroused to feel self conscious about his nakedness, Jinwoo walked over to the desk and pulled out a container of lube and a condom. 

“Um. I realize I should have brought this up earlier, but what’s your preference?” Seungyoon sat up lazily, his eyes focused on Jinwoo’s phallus. A small smirk ghosted over his face “ I’m versatile. Whatever you feel more comfortable doing is fine with me.” “I… I haven’t done this in a while, so I’ll um..” Jinwoo completed his statement with a hand gesture, which made Seungyoon laugh. “Got it. Pass me the lube” Jinwoo awkwardly threw the container of lube at him and watched him shift to reposition himself on the bed. Seungyoon was now on all fours, his butt directed towards Jinwoo. “Stay where you are and watch me” Seungyoon’s fingers lingered on the cleft, gently stroking it the smooth skin of his behind. His lube covered fingers parted his cheeks, exposing his puckered hole. Jinwoo moaned in frustration. He was so turned on. He barely registered that he had begun stroking himself as he longingly watched Seungyoon finger himself open. He pressed on the base of his hard cock, willing himself not to come early. “Jinwoo, condom, now” Jinwoo opened the package with shaky hands before he quickly rolled the latex onto his throbbing phallus and joined Seungyoon on the bed. 

Seungyoon rolled Jinwoo over so he was seated on his pelvis, teasing his erection with his oiled cleft. Seungyoon moved, teasing Jinwoo by rubbing himself on his erection while gently stroking him with his left hand without actually taking him in. Jinwoo felt Seungyoon’s warm heat encapsulate his phallus and the sophomore slowly sank unto his dick. The room was filled with moans and the sound of skin hitting skin filled the room as Seungyoon rode Jinwoo. “I’m really close, Seungyoon” Jinwoo whispered as the pleasure built, but Seungyoon barely heard it. The older boy was also close to the edge and his movements slowed as he tugged on himself quickly. Jinwoo grabbed his hips and started thrusting into him, hard and fast, making sure to hit the spot that pulled the loudest moans out of Seungyoon. He felt the pleasure build in him and just as Seungyoon screamed out his climax, clamping around Jinwoo’s erection, it spilled over, Jinwoo arched his hips, pulling Seungyoon into him as he jerked inside his heat, riding the wave of pleasure.

Seungyoon collapsed on the bed beside Jinwoo. Their bodies were glistening with sweat, and Jinwoo was still panting from the physical exertion. He remained in a post-coital haze for a while, barely noticing when Seungyoon left the bed, or when he returned. “Here” He noticed that Seungyoon was passing him a towel, and he grabbed it and began cleaning up. “That was fun”. Jinwoo looked up at Seungyoon. “Is that a signal for me to leave or something? I told you that I’ve never done this before. I don’t know the lingo”. Seungyoon blushed and smiled at Jinwoo. “No, I actually mean it. I was wondering whether you’d like to meet up again? Can I get your number?” Just as Jinwoo took Seungyoon’s phone and began putting in his number, someone started pounding on the door, startling both of them. “Jinwoo! Jinwoo! Jinwoo are you in there? Jinwoo!”  
Seungyoon scrambled off the bed and opened the door to reveal a very angry Mino. Mino shoved him out of the way to search the room for Jinwoo, and stopped in his tracks as though he had been struck by lightening when he saw Jinwoo. It was understandable. Jinwoo looked completely fucked out. Since he was shirtless, the scratches and hickeys that Seungyoon had made on his neck and back were very visible, his hair was messy, his lips were swollen, and worst of all, Seungyoon was almost naked too. Mino turned on Seungyoon, aggressively cornering him. “What are you doing, Mino?” “He took advantage of you. You were drinking a lot when I left, and when I came back downstairs, you were gone. One of the guys at the pool table told me that this guy took you to his room” Jinwoo sat up and wrapped the sheets securely around his waist before he walked toward the other two. “Do I look or sound drunk, Mino?” Mino’s gaze raked over Jinwoo, and his grudging shook his head. “That doesn’t matter though. You were drinking when he saw you. You were under the influence. You shouldn’t be hooking up with people when you’re wasted.” “For the second time, I wasn’t wasted. I don’t see how this is any of your business anyway. How is this any different from what you were doing a couple of minutes ago?” Mino blustered for a few seconds before he stammered a reply “It’s… It’s just not the same, and you know it. You don’t do things like this, Jinwoo”. “I’m not dealing with this right now, Mino. If you were trying to find me so we can go home together, there’s no need. I’m staying here for the rest of the night” Jinwoo shot an apologetic look at Seungyoon, whose expression was a mix of incredulity and fear. “Good night Mino”. Mino looked furious and a little sad as he left the room, and Jinwoo immediately deflated when he heard the door click shut. He slid down the wall until he was seated on the floor. 

Seungyoon made his way to his side. “So, it’s complicated, huh?” “Yeah” Jinwoo muttered. “If it makes you feel better, I think he was mostly jealous. He looked like he wanted to beat me into a pulp throughout the time he was here, and I don’t think it was because he thought you had been drinking” “That doesn’t mean anything though. I’m doomed to pining after his oblivious straight ass for the next four years” “I know the feeling. I had to deal with a similar situation during my first year here. You need to work it out on your own, and I should probably get out of your way for that. You have my number now. Text me if you need someone to talk to, or more” Seungyoon added with a wink. Jinwoo smiled in response and gave him a side hug. “Do you mind if I sleep over tonight though?” “That’s fine” Jinwoo pulled himself up and made his way to the bed. Seungyoon joined him there and asked in a teasing voice “Cuddles?” Jinwoo tapped the bed beside him in invitation. Seungyoon lay down beside him and pulled him closer. It had been a while since Jinwoo had been the little spoon, and he leaned into the older boy, enjoying the solid warm body behind him. He would worry about Mino later.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jinwoo and Mino deal with the aftermath of their fight.

Jinwoo spent the next week in a daze. Since that eventful night, Mino had been avoiding him like the plague. It was weird navigating university by himself. He hadn’t realized how much he had come to view Mino’s presence as a constant in the midst of the fast-paced academic environment. No one chased him down the quad anymore. No one passed him inappropriate notes in biology class. No one tagged him in the comments sections of the kinky secrets on their college confession page. It was weird. Jinwoo felt emptier than he had felt in years.

The central quad was filled with students lying on the grass and savoring the last breath of autumn. Jinwoo’s feet felt heavy as he trudged to the biology building for his lab class. It was all he could do to get himself to walk the remaining distance to the imposing building instead of joining everyone on the half-dead grass and forgetting all his problems. Jinwoo thought about all the annoying aspects of the lab class - unnecessary experiments, long wait-times, and the general futility of teaching research in such a non-rigorous, mentally unstimulating manner. A frown settled itself on Jinwoo’s face as he remembered the condescending lab TA, the chatty sorority girls, and that one annoying premed who wouldn’t shut the fuck up about how fascinated she was by cadavers. All these things were valid reasons for his distaste for the class one week ago, but he had still enjoyed it then. Although he wouldn’t admit it to himself, Jinwoo knew that the change in his relationship with Mino was the principal cause of his current disposition. Choosing the same lab section had worked out well for them in the past - As lab partners, they made the boring protocols interesting by suggesting the most ridiculous hypotheses and testing them with the chemicals in the lab. It made the whole endeavor bearable. But now, Jinwoo wasn’t sure what would happen. Was Mino still angry with him? Would he get mad at him in front of the whole class? Or even worse, would he pretend the last three months hadn’t happened and ignore Jinwoo? His vision grew blurry as tears welled up in his eyes. Jinwoo tried to covertly wipe them off with the sleeve of his sweater. God, he was being pathetic. Jinwoo paused for a minute to steel his resolve before swinging the door open and heading towards his fate. 

Jinwoo took his usual seat at the back of the lab and looked around. There were only five other students in the room - none of them was Mino. They had five minutes before the lab class began, and Jinwoo found himself alternating between fidgeting in his seat and staring at the closed door. How would Mino react to seeing him again? Five minutes passed, and nine more students sauntered into the class. Mino was still missing. Ten minutes, the TA had finished distributing the graded lab reports from last week, still no Mino. Thirty minutes, the long-winded lecture by the TA which was completely ignored by Jinwoo had ended, and Mino was nowhere to be found. Jinwoo felt dread gathering like clouds at the bottom of his stomach. All this time he had assumed Mino was avoiding him, but what if he wasn’t? What if there something wrong and Jinwoo didn’t notice because he had been so absorbed in his own issues?

Jinwoo grabbed his backpack, muttered an excuse at his TA, and hurried out the room. His fast steps turned into a jog once he exited the building, and then, a sprint as he made his way through the quad back to Bastion. Panicked thoughts rushed through his mind as he ran. He racked his brain trying to remember the last time he’d caught a glimpse of the younger man. Mino hadn’t attended biology class in the last five days, he hadn’t come downstairs for the dorm study breaks, and he didn’t go to the PAWS meetings. Jinwoo had assumed that Mino was skipping any events that would bring them together. Maybe Mino was angry with him… or disgusted by the visible proof of his sexuality. Jinwoo’s pride had stopped him from texting Mino to find out where he was, and now, he kicked himself for it. An atheist for most of his life, Jinwoo muttered prayers promising a God he didn’t even believe in anything, everything, if it meant Mino was okay. 

A brief misadventure with a misaligned key card later, Jinwoo was pushing past a bunch of frat boys to exit the elevator. He made his way to Mino’s room, paused for a minute to regain composure, and started banging on the door.  
“Mino!”  
“Mino, are you in there?”  
“It’s me. Come out, we need to talk!”  
Silence.  
Jinwoo fiddled with the handle. The door was locked. It wasn’t just the inside bolt that Mino liked to use, the full lock had been activated. Mino never locked his door. Not even when he went to class. Jinwoo had teased him about leaving his belongings open to theft countless times. 

After looking around and noticing that none of Mino’s floormates seemed to be in as well, Jinwoo pulled his phone out of his bag. His fingers moved like they had their own will, entering the numbers he knew too well. It rang and rang. Mino didn’t pick up.  
“Fuck!”  
In a fit of frustration, Jinwoo kicked the door again. It didn’t budge. 

There was nothing else he could do now. He would have to wait for someone who could answer his questions to arrive. Jinwoo slid down the metal door and curled up on the thin carpet, readying himself for what could be a long wait. 

****

Despite his attempts to remain vigilant, Jinwoo felt himself drifting off into sleep. His latent anxiety about Mino’s disappearance still made startled him sharply awake every few minutes with a rapidly pounding heart. He would look around each time for some sign of Mino or even his floormates, but they were conspicuously absent. Jinwoo idly wondered whether this was a serious enough situation to warrant talking to the resident head about Mino’s whereabouts. He hadn’t talked to the man since orientation week, and he wasn’t even sure if Mino was really gone.

At that moment, someone tapped Jinwoo on his shoulder, shaking him out of his daydreams. Jinwoo looked up to see a very familiar shock of black hair. Mino. His gaze trailed down the figure above him, noting the dark circles under the intense eyes, the unnatural pallor of the perfect tan skin, the oversized white t-shirt that Mino only wore when he was feeling sad. Something was wrong. While Jinwoo was taking in Mino’s appearance, the younger man had tapped his keycard against the door. Jinwoo watched in silent trepidation as Mino pushed open the door open. Was Mino going to ask him to leave?  
“Are you coming in?”  
The question was spoken in such a low tone that Jinwoo almost thought he had imagined it. Before Mino could withdraw his invitation, Jinwoo grabbed his backpack and stumbled into the room, where he stood awkwardly waiting for Mino to drag the suitcase into the room and close the door. He wasn’t sure what to do or say. Could he revert to pretending their friendship was fine and that the big fight last week didn’t happen? Maybe it was a better idea to address it later after he found out what was going on with Mino. 

The door slammed shut, and he turned to stare at Mino again.  
“I’m sorry.”  
Jinwoo was confused. He knew what Mino was apologizing for, but he’d spent one week agonizing over Mino’s avoidance of him and the fight, so an abrupt apology was very unexpected.  
“What?”  
Mino started to walk toward the closet, brushing by Jinwoo as he deposited his suitcase in the bottom half of the sparsely filled closet.  
“I’m sorry about how I reacted at the party last week. I don’t know why I said those things to you. I think I may have had too much to drink. I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable.”

Jinwoo could feel himself growing progressively more annoyed. One week with zero communication, no attempt to apologize in person, via text, or even email, and Mino expected him to accept that bland apology and ‘I don’t know why’ as an explanation?

“Are you fucking with me right now?”  
Jinwoo didn’t even notice how much he had raised his voice, but judging by the shift in Mino’s expression, the other man had.  
“It took you one week - OnE WEEK - to apologize for it, and all you have to say is I don’t know why and I was drunk? Sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable - oh you think the question of whether you made me feel uncomfortable by barging in on me, picking a fight with my hookup and making a scene while I was practically naked is still up for debate?”

Mino sat down on the bed, and rubbed his palm over his face. He looked tired. Jinwoo’s worry about his friend battled with the anger over how he had been treated. 

“I’m really sorry, okay? I don’t know what you want me to say.”

Anger won. 

“Are you fucking serious, Mino? How about I’m sorry about I’m sorry for ghosting you for a whole week and making you worry? I’m sorry for embarrassing you within view of an entire frat? An explanation! Any explanation for why you acted up would be fine! Don’t forget that I went with you to all those dumb parties where you -after drinking- hooked up with girls who were also drinking. Why do you suddenly have a problem with drunk hookups when I’m involved? Do you have a problem with my sexuality?”

Jinwoo hated the way his voice cracked toward the end of his last sentence. He could hear the hurt in it, and he hoped that Mino couldn’t see how vulnerable he felt at that moment. Mino was staring at him, with a shaky gaze that searched Jinwoo’s face for something. Jinwoo couldn’t be sure what that something was. He turned away to avoid eye contact. He could tell that he was close to tears, and crying over a fight that Mino didn’t seem to have felt as deeply as he did would be the icing on the humiliation cake.

“Do you really think that of me? The last three months of deep conversation and friendship, and you believe that I’m a homophobe? Have I ever done something to make you believe that I would display that kind of prejudice?”

Jinwoo’s anger began to falter again. Mino sounded really hurt by the accusation. He hadn’t meant to bring it up, but that question had been at the center of his anger and worry for the last seven days. When he started venting, everything had just spilled out.

“So you’re fine with it?”  
“Of course I’m fine with it!”  
“Then why did you freak out on me last week. Don’t give me that bullshit about it being nothing. We both know that’s impossible.”  
Mino wouldn’t look at Jinwoo - the younger man’s gaze was firmly fixated on the blue bed-sheets, and his fingers began tracing complicated figures on the soft fabric.  
“It’s dumb.”  
Jinwoo heard the vulnerability in his voice. It drew him toward Mino, the urge to comfort his friend rising with each passing minute. He walked to the bed and sank into the soft mattress beside Mino.  
“Tell me”  
“I was feeling protective.”  
Jinwoo gave Mino a sharp glance “You were what?”  
“Don’t give me that look. I know it was stupid, and I don’t own you. It’s just youretheclosestthingtoabestfriendI’veeverhad. I thought I was looking out for you when I first entered the room, and after that, I just couldn’t stop it. I remembered when I’d talk about frat dancefloor hookups, and you’d make that disgusted face before going on long rants about how i wasn’t your thing. You can see how I got confused. I’m really sorry. It won’t happen again. I know you can look out for yourself.”

Jinwoo gently punched his chest “You couldn’t have told me that one week ago so that we could avoid all this angst?”

Mino smiled that special soft smile that turned Jinwoo’s brain to mush every time. “I wanted to. Are we good now?”

“Yeah, we’re good.”

Jinwoo leaned back until he was fully laid out on Mino’s bed. Mino copied the movement. Their heads were close enough for Jinwoo to subtly match the soft tides of Mino’s breaths. 

“You’re not off the hook yet. Why do you look so tired, and does it have anything to do with your week-long disappearance? What’s going on, Mino?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! I'm back. As a compromise of sorts between the 50% daily short chapter and 44% weekly long chapter votes, I'll be doing 3 mid-length chapters a week (each should be about 2000 words). 
> 
> I forgot some parts of the plot (mainly the reason why I put the fight in so early), so this is a filler chapter to tie up that loose end and proceed with the feel-good slow burn young college love storyline I initially planned. My writing got a bit rusty during the year-long break. It'll get smoother in later chapters. Hope you enjoyed this!


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